10 years ago today I got my RTV

B

bczoom

Senior Member
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Been a nice experience. I tweaked it to my needs within the first year or so (change tires, add stereo...) but it's been flawless since.

Hoping I don't jinx things but it's never been in the shop. I did have a couple issues early on (e.g. anyone remember the fogging gauges?) but the dealer just gave me the replacements.

Who else has passed or approaching the 10 year mark?
 
That is great Zoom- times just flies when we are having so much fun with these machines. . I bought my first RTV in February of 2005 so you have more months of seat time than I do. I sure do remember the fogging gauges on that first one and for sure the rattling driveshaft.... Many happy hours on my 2 machines though.. The tweaking is everything. :tiphat: judy
 
How many hours on yours Brian? I just turned over 700 on mine. I got it in dec of 2012 with 635. I was shocked to see I had only put 65 hours on it since I'd had it. For all I've done with it that is awesome.

I've had my tractor 12 years as of last month. I called to have top and tilt put on it last month and they said, I don't know, it's kinda old. not sure i can get that hardware. :eek: Old? Heck I've just broke it in. My ZTR has more hours on it than the tractor, I got it 3 years later but use it for all the mowing duties.
 
I have had my rtv 900 dec 08 1700 hrs srt new shoes at 1300hrs ,drive shaft , 2 sets uni jounts sill going like new
 
I forgot to put my hrs of use. 2005 model RTV 900 = 4,200+ hrs - still good when sold. 2011 model-1,535+ hrs as of today and runs like a champ.
 
Doc said:
How many hours on yours Brian?
Click to expand...
I think it has about 345. That's not nearly as much as the rest of y'all got but most of my jobs/travels are a matter of minutes. This year it'll get more hours than normal due to the amount of firewood I'm going to process.

After living here for 20 years, pretty much everything is set at the homestead so all the equipment is now low-hours maintenance work.

My tractor is now 18 years old and only has about 660 hours. The first 500 were put on in its first 5 years cutting trails and grading/moving over 200 dump truck loads of dirt in the yard. Now it's about 10 hours per year for rototilling, snow removal and some loader work. There's 2 other tractors out there that each have about 15 minutes total of run time in the last 5 years.

ZTR is 10 years old and gets maybe 20 hours per year.

Truck is 10 years old and only has 45K miles. It does help when you work from home and Mrs. Zoom's vehicles are normally used for trips or family outings.

One ATV is 15 years old and only has 1000 miles. Haven't checked my daily driver ATV but it has less than 1K miles as well. Kids each have ATV's but they get driven less-and-less as they get older.

Lots of things to ride on so the time and miles are spread out amongst the group.
 
My 04 has around 300 hours but I got it when it was 4 years old and 106 hrs..Someone else got to love it for its first 4 years of its childhood.Hope it doesn't turn into a typical teenager a couple of years down the road.
 
"Hope it doesn't turn into a typical teenager a couple of years down the road. "

Do you mean:
Always out of fuel, stereo on high when you turn the key on, some light is normally left on so your battery is draining, tire pressure and oil never checked...

or do you mean:
Doesn't want to work anymore, constantly giving you trouble, looks raggety.

or both?
 
bczoom said:
"Hope it doesn't turn into a typical teenager a couple of years down the road. "

Do you mean:
Always out of fuel, stereo on high when you turn the key on, some light is normally left on so your battery is draining, tire pressure and oil never checked...

or do you mean:
Doesn't want to work anymore, constantly giving you trouble, looks raggety.

or both?
Click to expand...

All of the above.....:whistling:
 
I am surprised to see the accumulation of hours on my RTV. I use it so often for all kinds of chores but from the total hours and comparing to some others use here it seems I baby it, or hardly use it which is not the case at all. 70 hours in a year does not seem like much but I don't know what I'd do without it. I know the RTV Border Collie uses is for running the farm but still I'm amazed at the total hours. :thumb: :tiphat:
 
Mine has more hours from the key being on than actual running it. I got mine in the spring of 06. I don't use it a lot but it is always reliable and still has the original battery etc. It's use goes from way light hauling grass clipping and weeds to hauling loads of rocks and firewood. I have replaced a fan belt a stick got to and changed the fuel filter once. Regular maintenance and never had a problem with it.
 
Muleman, that's a long time for a battery to last. Are you doing anything to maintain the battery life such as trickle charging, acid additive, voodoo?
 
pepr said:
Muleman, that's a long time for a battery to last. Are you doing anything to maintain the battery life such as trickle charging, acid additive, voodoo?
Click to expand...
Not a thing. It gets a lot of use and then might sit for months over the winter unless I am dragging the log splitter around. My backhoe is ready for its third pair in 10 years.:bonk:
 
Right there with you Mr. Mule.......... Still using the original battery here also. Must be somethin about those early years of the RTV. Got my 05 in 06 with less than 100 hours on it. The original owner died and had left it in really good shape. We use it at least once a day to make the mile trip to the mail box, haul wood most every day through the winter from the shed to the house, move a ton of feed at a time from one barn to another and just around.

This last winter when it was in the teens or below, I had to make sure that I kept the glow plugs on to the count of 15 or so and then get it started on the first kick. It would always just fire off when that was done. If somebody forgot to warm those plugs up a bit and cranked it for a while and then tried to start it............OK.......get the battery charger and give it a boost. Now though, in the spring....count to 5 when it's cold and it fires right up........Good ol girl....Can't brag on that machine enough....Oil changes, fluid levels and changes, tires every 700 hours, and a seat to recover when I get around to put on the replacement...........God is good to us fellas............Dennis
 
I agree Dennis. Good maintenance is everything to a long life.The RTV's I have had are great machines. I am curious though, tires replaced every 700 hours? I think I read a while back that you use the WS tires? I guess I should quit being concerned about my grippers wearing then. There is still a whole a lot of tread left . Just could see it starting to wear but after so many hours this winter, that is expected.. Just want them to last forever since it has been so wet here- they will stay on..
My hours are listed a little short in the last post. It should be 1646 hours.
 
Yes, for sure Miss Collie..............700 or so hours on the WS tires. That is with rotating them perhaps every 3 or 400 or when I notice that the rears are really getting worn. I truly dislike changing those tires as the design of the hubs means you have to line up the holes and get them started rather than a bolt sticking out to hang them on and then put the bolts on them. Yes, I should just find the proper size bolt, cut the head off, thread it into the hole at 12 oclock and use it as a "stud" to hang the tire on and get the rest started.
Yes, I realize that grippers will give longer life, but for me, the place is pretty much hilly and when I have the aggressive tires on there are to many places around the barns, house, gates, heavy use areas, and just hilly pasture that I truly do NOT want to tear up with that heavy duty grab that those GOOD tires of yours do. It's bad enough that I have R4's on the B7610 tractor and they tend to rut or tear up sod quite a bit.
I use a LOT of mulch, ground up limbs from trees that I use for timber/firewood, around the place to build roads, paths, and fill in where the tires "dig in" a bit. Seldom do we get into a slippery place that just using the differential lock with the 4WD kicked in and we need more traction............Almost never.......lol.....I use the winch for pulling trees and stuff than I ever use for getting stuck. Except every now and then a neighbor will call that has gotten himself into a jam and needs help pulling himself or a visitor out of a ditch...............
BUT.......I truly see how you and Jamie can use HEAVY duty treads to get in and out off the "fun" on your daily travels and chores.............Well, back to the salt mines. My hired hand showed up which means I have to work.....SHUCKSOROONEY............God bless.......Dennis
 
D&D Farm said:
Yes, for sure Miss Collie..............700 or so hours on the WS tires. That is with rotating them perhaps every 3 or 400 or when I notice that the rears are really getting worn. I truly dislike changing those tires as the design of the hubs means you have to line up the holes and get them started rather than a bolt sticking out to hang them on and then put the bolts on them. Yes, I should just find the proper size bolt, cut the head off, thread it into the hole at 12 oclock and use it as a "stud" to hang the tire on and get the rest started.
Yes, I realize that grippers will give longer life, but for me, the place is pretty much hilly and when I have the aggressive tires on there are to many places around the barns, house, gates, heavy use areas, and just hilly pasture that I truly do NOT want to tear up with that heavy duty grab that those GOOD tires of yours do. It's bad enough that I have R4's on the B7610 tractor and they tend to rut or tear up sod quite a bit.
I use a LOT of mulch, ground up limbs from trees that I use for timber/firewood, around the place to build roads, paths, and fill in where the tires "dig in" a bit. Seldom do we get into a slippery place that just using the differential lock with the 4WD kicked in and we need more traction............Almost never.......lol.....I use the winch for pulling trees and stuff than I ever use for getting stuck. Except every now and then a neighbor will call that has gotten himself into a jam and needs help pulling himself or a visitor out of a ditch...............
BUT.......I truly see how you and Jamie can use HEAVY duty treads to get in and out off the "fun" on your daily travels and chores.............Well, back to the salt mines. My hired hand showed up which means I have to work.....SHUCKSOROONEY............God bless.......Dennis
Click to expand...

Hi Dennis, Oh, I don't know if the grippers will give better life or not , I was just curious if maybe the rubber composition had maybe changed since I ran the WS a good while on the 05 I had. I have had a whole lot of trouble with previous grippers.. I am just hoping this set will last a long time as much as they cost. I really need some summer tires for the dry weather to take hrs off of these so was curious.
like you, I change the tires my self and find it handy to put a flat shovel under the tire a bit, if I have it a hair off and instead of letting down the hyd jack too much etc.. I just use the edge of the shovel and maybe a 2x4 as an axis to raise the tire a hair. It really helps me line them up. Then my knee or foot to hold while I line it up and start a lug...
Sometimes, with the super deep lug whole- oem original chrome rims I have, ( Package deal on my RTV purchase) - I used on summer tires - I about have a fit putting them on and will use the previous way and then sometime use a piece of dowel or pvc to line up the lug holes. They are a bear- I have to watch my language with them.. :hammer: :tiphat: collie
 
Bordercollie - If you need a set of spares I was told by the guy I bought my RTV from that some of the Kubota BX tractors use the same size rims as the RTV. The place I bought my RTV had piles of new take-offs (tractor may have come with turf but buyer wanted R4's so they order the R4's and put the take-offs on the shelf). He was selling them cheap. I can't help you now as our dealer stopped selling Kubota's.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top